Todd Akin and the road to infamy

In light of the speeches last night at the Republican national convention, there is nothing that can get my BP rising, than an email from Todd Akin asking for money, “chip-in” as he calls it.

Party bosses and the Washington elite always seem to want to take the easy way out.

The federal budget is a great example – insiders keep folks happy by making sure everyone has a little something.

Those same party bosses and DC insiders have turned their backs on our campaign. But the people of Missouri and folks across this nation said, “Not so fast!”

We have received an outpouring of support from people just like you who are saying “No” to the party bosses, and saying “Yes!” to our campaign – a campaign centered on protecting life, taking back the Senate, and defeating one of Barack Obama and Harry Reid’s top allies, liberal Senator Claire McCaskill.

I’ve always been a proponent of the Voltaire quote, “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” It describes precisely my POV regarding Todd Akin. Akin is as foolish as he is delusional, and this is where I break with some of his more conservative supporters, such as Mike Huckabee, (whom I like by the way) who are aiding and abetting this delusion, under the guise that this was merely a slip-of-the-tongue, a gaffe. I would counter by saying that Todd Akin is a 6-term Congressman, and when in front of the media and being asked sparring questions, should know how to handle himself. Akin entered the Senate race to represent all Missourians, and to talk about issues affecting his constituents, especially the economy, jobs, education, healthcare, energy, etc. Instead he’s lured into a conversation about abortion, and provides us with a personal view that many men and women alike find disconcerting. Abortion is an intensely personal matter. “Until you walk in my shoes” is another favorite phrase of mine, and perhaps a week spent with a big-city Special Victims Unit, witnessing the emotional, physical, and psychological trauma of “legitimate” rape victims, might cause some to ponder positions from which they staunchly do not budge.

The most recent polling data shows Akin down anywhere from 6-9 points in Missouri. What should have been a win for the GOP in their fight to retake Senate and potentially repeal Obamacare, has instead turned into a probable defeat at this point in time. While he has his “fifteen minutes of fame” now and vows to stay in the race, he should ask himself if he can live with the infamy if he fails.

1 Comment

Steve Wilczynski

August 29, 2012

Thanks for your thoughtful post. You state that you like Mike Huckabee. I probably disagree with his positions on most things, but 2 of his beliefs, non-acceptance of both evolution and the age of the Earth being approximately 4.5 billion years mark him as an anti-intellectual and therefore not deserving of any serious consideration. I’ll give him a pass on human-influenced climate change, because the arguments haven’t been around for that long.